


ocean eyes

by Midnightminx90



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Human, Captain Fjord, Diary/Journal, Doctor Caduceus Clay, F/M, The Royal Navy, Weddings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-26
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-08-29 22:11:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16752397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Midnightminx90/pseuds/Midnightminx90
Summary: In the past, Fjord and Jester meet at the end of summer. When Fjord's ship is destroyed, Jester nurses him back to health. They start their life together just as a the sunflowers bloom. But Sabien, the man who destroyed the only life Fjord had ever know is still out there. How long will their life on the island last before the pirates come calling?In the present day, a young woman seeks to learn about her birth family. She never knew anything growing up, except that the ocean is known to steal away the men of her family, going back generations. After years and years, she has been told of the ruins of their house. Will her long-awaited return to Sunflower Shore at last give her the answers she longs for?(CURRENTLY ON HOLD)





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> (rating, characters and tags to be added/changed as I write more of this)

The door creaks open, dust dancing in the sunlight streaming in through the trees lining the driveway.    
  
A young woman stands at the threshold, uncertain. She’s wanted,  _ needed _ this for a long time, but now that the moment is here, she stalls. Her wish is about to be fulfilled but she is nonetheless hesitant to take a step into the decrepit building. Mansion, really. It’s stood empty for generations, but she’s never been told the reason why. Her adoptive parents never learnt the reason why, and her birth father took the secret to his grave.    
  
She never knew her mother.   
  
Her mother had left just after giving birth, leaving her father to raise her alone until the sea claimed him. Like it claimed generations of her family before him. At times she’s wondered if there’s been a curse on her family, dating back for generations. As she grew older, she put such superstitions away.    
  
But now?   
  
Now she’s standing on the once grand porch of the home that belong to her great-something-grandparents. She’s not sure how far back, and the mansion if faded enough there are no clear signs as to the architecture. Doesn’t help that it’s situated right by the ocean, left to bleach and wither in the brine and baking sun.    
  
She supposes it must once have been grand, but there is no trace of grandeur any longer.    
  
‘ _ You’ve wanted this for years _ ’, she thinks to herself. ‘ _ Don’t be such a coward _ .’ The world seems to hold its breath as she moves, at last, stepping across the threshold and into the darkness beyond.    
  
The inside is not empty, as she had suspected.   
  
A large chandelier lies on the floor of the grand foyer, the crystals shattered across the tiles, casting rainbows through the room, reflections from the sunlight streaming in. In the ceiling there is a gaping wound where the chandelier once was affixed. Streaks spread out from where the hole is, much like a spider’s web.   
  
Moving towards the staircase she looks into the adjoining rooms, through doors fallen off their hinges, or left open.    
  
She sees furniture covered in what must once have been white sheets, but it has all rotted away until only the bare bones, the skeletons, remain. At the back of the foyer a set of double doors, glass long since broken from storms, lead onto a large porch. Through them, she sees a garden path lead down to a pristine, white beach with a small dock to one side.    
  
The garden itself is a tangled mess, more a field of wildflowers than anything else.    
  
It’s not there she will find answers. Instead, she turns to the stairs and ascend, ever so carefully, to ensure the wood will still hold her weight.    
The landing turns into two hallways, one to each side and to what she can only assume are the bedrooms. Following her instinct, she walks down the hall to her right, and at the end finds the master bedroom.    
  
Inside is utter chaos.   
  
It is a large room, the remnants of the largest four-poster bed she’s ever laid eyes on stand in the middle, opposite the door. To her left is a large fireplace, a ruined loveseat that’s been overturned in front. To her right, large doors lead out onto a balcony overlooking the ocean and gardens below. Bookcases, chairs, a table, the wardrobes and mirror, all broken and shattered.    
  
As though a storm had torn through this room, leaving the rest of the house untouched.   
  
She looks into the other rooms on this floor, bedrooms all, and find them all untouched but for the passage of time. Trying not to think of the implications, she continues up the stairs, passing the servant’s quarters until she at last find the door leading to the attic.    
  
Taking out her flashlight, she ascends the stairs, more carefully than the two sets that had led her up here in the first place.   
  
Small, round windows, like those on s ship cast some light into the room, but not much. She’s glad she brought the flashlight, hoping the battery will last her through her exploration of the place. Her phone has one too, of course, but she is loath to use more battery on her phone than she has to. ‘ _ Just in case _ ,’ she tells herself.   
  
Crates, the bones of furniture, decorative items, rotted rugs and half-covered paintings fill the space.   
  
She hopes she’s in the right place to learn, at last. It’s been a long journey, tracking down what little information there was available on her birth family. At last, a chance encounter had led her to this place. If she doesn’t find the truth here, doesn’t find the information she so desperately wants about who she is and where she comes from… Or what the skin condition it seems none but her family has means. No. Not her family. Her family is her parents, who took her in by choice and who raised her as their own.   
  
This family, the one who has left her with nothing but questions unanswered for her entire life, this family is not her family.   
  
Her birth father, she barely remembers. She was young when he died, and so was he. Not far into his twenties, she’s been told. She doesn’t know anything about her birth mother, nor does she want to. The woman had left her and her father both, and doesn’t deserve second thought.    
  
She walks towards the furthest end from where she entered.   
  
Looking out the window, she finds herself directly above the master bedroom. And there, at the end, what seems to be a large painting, covered by a thick, heavy fabric that has somehow withstood the wear and tear of time.   
  
Pulling the fabric to the side, she gasps at what she sees.    
  
There, staring back at her, is a couple. They can only be her great-grandparents, many generations ago. Staring back at her, happy on what she assumes is their wedding-day, the couple smiles. One of the man’s arms encircle the woman’s waist, the other resting on the handle of a word of some kind. The woman holds a bouquet in her hands, the flowers seeming to shift in the light, so vivid is the oil paint still.    
  
But their faces…   
  
It’s like looking into a mirror. The woman, her great-grandmother is her own spitting image, but it’s her great-grandfather’s face that strikes her the most. The dual skin, the way it is both light and dark, just like her own. The reason she’s always felt wrong, felt like an outsider, staring back at her from an oil painting of her own ancestors.   
  
Her eyes unfocus, gaze blurred as she looks at the painting, without really seeing it, and it causes the pair to blend together and become herself. It seems like she really is looking into a mirror, only… She feels as though her past and present is looking back.   
  
Below, on a plaque, she reads their names.   
  
**Jester and Fjord Lavorre** .


	2. Jester's Diary - part one

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jester tells the story of how she met Fjord and how she saved him after his ship was wrecked by a series of diary entries

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had originally planned to have Fjord's first chapter before this, but I felt this part would fit in better and act better as a transition between the past and present.  
> In addition I had hoped to update this sooner, but exams took over my life and then I was so worn out from them I had no energy for this, paired with a lack of inspiration. The holidays arriving and getting sick on top of it really did not help either

**Dear diary,**  
  
_Today, I met a sailor by the name of Fjord. His skin is different, both light and dark and he is the handsomest man I have ever seen. Fjord is not rich, and his skin is warm and worn by the ocean and yet I know he is the man for me. It might sound silly, but mama told me she felt the same way about my father. I do not know if mama will agree, although at the same time she has never been like the other Ladies. They wish only for their daughters to marry for money, not for love. While it is true that money means security and comfort, I do believe that to be happy is more important. For what is life when you have comfort but no love? Why suffer for years and years, and bear the children of a man older than you who shares none of your interests? Fjord is kind and funny. He does not act like the Lords and their sons, who only see women as objects to be lorded over and birds to be set in a gilded cage. I wore my new yellow dress today, and Fjord compared me to a sunflower. He does not know that they are my favourite and that my father wooed mama by bringing them to her every day for as long as they bloomed. Fjord told me he is going away on a journey with his father for a while. I do hope I will see him again._

 Jester Lavorre

  
  
  
**Dear diary,**  
  
_I have not heard from Fjord in some months. While he did tell me he would be gone for some time, I had not expected to find myself waiting this long. Perhaps I was a fool to think he would want to see me again. Still, I do not wish to give up hope. I have been told journeys like this can go on for quite some time, and there are bad storms out at sea this time of year. I have watched some from my window at night, watching and waiting for some news. Please, do not let anything ill have befallen his ship. Bring him back to me so I can see that he still lives._

 Jester Lavorre

  
  
**Dear diary,**  
  
_Someone came calling at first light and the sounds woke me up. I rushed to the stairs to find the source and found a wounded Fjord in the hallway, supported by some of our staff. The gardeners found him on our small beach and brought him inside. I ran to his side, not caring about the state of my dress. They followed my instructions by carrying him to one of our guest rooms, and I started to assess his wounds. When mama entered the room, she sent for the doctor at once, but I could not find it in me to leave Fjord. And so I stayed, even when doctor Clay arrived and I insisted on helping him clean the wounds. It looked worse than it was, thank the heavens._

Jester Lavorre

  
  
**Dear diary,**  
  
_I have spent these past days by Fjord’s side. He is in better health, although he is not yet awake. I feed him soup and he swallows it, and doctor Clay says it shows he will come back to me. Mama tells me to come away so I can sleep but I worry too much to leave. But because I know she cares for my health, I take some walks in the garden, watching the first flowers of spring bloom. I pick some of them and place them in a small vase on Fjord’s bedside table. Maybe in another life I might have been a healer. Although I do not believe I have it in me to do this for just anyone._ _  
_ _I worry Fjord will not remember me when he wakes up. It was all so long ago now, and the kind doctor says it is yet too early to know how his mind was affected by the accident. We may never know what happened. But as long Fjord wakes up I am happy._

Jester Lavorre

  
  
**Dear diary,**  
  
_Fjord woke up today. He was confused, but once he saw me he calmed down. The rest has done him good. He looks far better than when he arrived. His wounds are healing as they should and the bruises are fading._ _  
_ _I hold his hand as he tells me of what took place, of Sabien who he had once considered a brother who turned traitor. They were out on the sea when they were set upon by pirates. Sabien revealed he had led the captain of the ship and her crew to their location and when they arrived, he had joined her aboard her ship. Because the ship Fjord sailed upon was a trading vessel, they had barely any means of defending themselves. Not that it would have helped them in any way, as Sabien had done something with the blackpowder that ensured that the ship blew up once the pirate ship was clear. Fjord says he was thrown overboard by the impact and he remembers nothing after that._  
We do not know if there are any other survivors, nor how long Fjord was adrift at sea before he washed up on our shore.

 Jester Lavorre

 

  
**Dear diary,**  
  
_I told Fjord I will take care of him until he is well again. I will admit, I loathe the thought of it. While he is here, we take short walks in the garden while he regains his strength. Although I see the worry in his eyes as he looks out on the ocean, I do believe being this close to it brings him comfort. Familiarity is important, doctor Clay says when he visits. He tells me I do a good job taking care of Fjord and says he is pleased with the progress of his healing. I take the words close to heart and keep them there, thinking of them when I look at Fjord and see the sadness in his eyes. How I wish I could help replace it with happiness._

Jester Lavorre

  
  
**Dear diary,**  
  
_Fjord is well enough to leave our company. I do believe he truly is as well as he can be after such an experience, but it does not mean he is ready to be on his own. Fjord has lost all his family and friends, he no longer has a place to stay nor any work. Vandren was once a high ranking member of the navy before he left it to trade cargo amongst the isles and mainland. All Fjord has left are a handful of keepsakes and the uniform Vandren once wore that had been stored in the room he kept at the inn. But Fjord cannot afford to stay there. It might be selfish of me, but I do so wish for him to stay here with mama and me. Without him I fear I will grow lonely once again and I have grown to care for him over these weeks. Summer will soon be upon us and in a few short months it will have been one year since we first met. Perhaps I can talk mama into letting him stay with us longer. I do fear, however, that it will only postpone the inevitable._

Jester Lavorre

 

  
**Dear diary,**  
  
_Fjord has been gone all day. No one knows where he went nor when he left. I fear he will not return._ _  
_ _……………_  
_Fjord returned just in time for supper. He carried a piece of paper in his hand, telling us that he got a posting in the army. He will stay here, protecting the islands unless called away for a post elsewhere. From our talks, I have gained the understanding that for Fjord, being able to earn his keep is a point of pride, taught to him by Vandren. I told him that I am happy for him. It is not a lie, not really, but this is the first nail in the coffin for what could have been between us. After supper, I saw him talk to mama in private and for the first time in my life I decided not to listen in on their conversation. When he is ready to leave, I hope he will tell me good bye first._

 Jester Lavorre

 

  
**Dear diary,**  
  
_Fjord still lives with us. Summer is here and the weather is humid. I spend my time in the garden, shaded beneath the trees while I practice my painting. Fjord is away, sometimes for days, protecting the waters and keeping us safe from pirates who dare venture too close. He seems more at ease already, now that he has a ship beneath his feet again. I fear he was never meant for a life on land. Already fewer people look down upon him for the markings he cannot help. They know who he is now; the only survivor of a ship attacked by pirates who somehow made it back to shore with a minimal amount of scratches and bruises. Most knows who Vandren was, both from his days in the navy and his later years as a stable source of supply shipments. Some think Fjord will follow in his footsteps. I never met Vandren, so I cannot say what kind of man he was. But I do see the man Fjord is becoming and it makes me proud._

 Jester Lavorre

 

**Dear diary,**

_Summer is nearing its end and the sunflowers will soon be in bloom. Fjord asked me to take a walk in the garden tonight. He is acting unusual; he is not this quiet. I worry once more that he will leave us, although my fears have thus far proven to be wrong. Even a broken clock strikes true twice a day._ _  
_ _………._ _  
_ _HE ASKED FOR MY HAND IN MARRIAGE! This is why he talked to my mother some weeks ago. This is why he secured himself a position in the navy. Fjord tells me he suspected I was the one when he opened his eyes as saw me, and that at first he thought me an angel. He tells me that as we grew to know one another as I took care of him, that he came to know that as a fact._ _  
_ _Mama tells me Fjord has been nervous ever since he asked her permission to marry me, and that is the reason he stayed away as much as he did. That it was because he wanted to do this properly and not blurt it out. I believe I know him well enough by now that it does not come as a surprise that he thought as much. Indeed, mama was so sure I would say yes, even as Fjord feared quite the contrary, that she has been planning the reception ever since that very night. Most of the preparations are in order. The wedding will take place once the sunflowers bloom._  
_I have never been this happy in my life, nor do I think I ever will be, apart from the day of our wedding._

Jester Lavorre


	3. The Wedding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fjord's first chapter, and a wedding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, yes, it's almost four in the morning as I'm posting this... I just wrote 2k in one sitting, all bc I found the right music for this

Fjord adjusts his uniform again.  
  
He has lost track of how many times he is done it so far, but he needs to keep his hands busy somehow. The uniform is stiff, freshly cleaned and while the seamstress assured him it’s a perfect fit, he doesn’t feel like it is. But then again, it might come from the fact that he is unaccustomed to wearing it. Never in his life has Fjord needed to dress up. Growing up as a sailor, there are no events to attend. It has never been important.  
  
Today though, today is different.  
  
And yet it feels like the uniform chafes at every point of contact with his body. He longs to be rid of it, to wear clothes that aren’t shaped to his body like this outfit it. Fjord would also like to not have to wear out the fabric even more than it already has been. While he has earned his place in the navy, upon The Mist, or The Mistake as his crew so fondly nicknamed it the moment they set foot on it, the outfit was never made for _him_ .  
  
It had been made for Vandren.  
  
Vandren, his adopted father, who took Fjord in from the muddy streets when he was but an orphan who was considered lucky to even have a roof over his head. Vandren, who didn’t look upon Fjord’s complexion with a look of pity or disgust. Instead, he had taken the boy’s hand and offered him a home and a job aboard his ship.  
  
Not a day goes by that Fjord doesn’t miss the man.  
  
Vandren had been the only family Fjord had ever known, alongside Sabien, the man he had once considered a brother.  
  
But today is not a day for such thoughts. Today he’ll gain a new family, and Fjord never thought he would be so lucky to have someone choose him to be a part of theirs. First Vandren, now Jester.  
  
It seems all too fitting that as Fjord is about to become part of a new family, that he wears what was left to him by his old one.  
  
“You know, if you keep fiddling with that, you’ll only get more uncomfortable.” The source of the voice stands in the doorway. Fjord turns to see Beau, his first mate and closest friend apart from Jester. He had met Beau years ago, when she had asked to sail with Vandren to this particular island. A mainlander by birth, she had sought to escape the control of her family - her father in particular - and Vandren had welcomed her aboard.  
  
During the voyage, Fjord had taught her the ropes, both literally and figuratively.  
  
It’s all thanks to that journey that Beau now serves him aboard The Mistake. Through her, Fjord has come to know Caleb, their navigator; Nott, who is training to become the Master Gunner; Yasha, who is their carpenter; Mollymauk, who serves as the boatswain; Nila, their surgeon and cook; and Keg, as the master-at-arms.  
  
Marius was the only one Fjord or Beau did not already know, but he’s local and knows the waters, so he works together with Caleb when it comes to navigating.    
  
There is also Caleb’s cat, Frumpkin, and while Fjord knows a ship needs a mouser, he is _very_ allergic to the creature. Fjord had wanted to get rid of it, but Caleb had spoken up and said they were a deal. Either Fjord would let Frumpkin stay, or Caleb, Frumpkin and Nott would apply for a posting on another ship.  
  
“Oy! What’s taking so long?” A new voice joins Beau’s, and Fjord lowers his gaze to Nott. _Speak of the devil…_ Nott glares at him and taps her foot.  
  
She’s small for her age, but she’s quick and nimble and came aboard with an obsession of explosives that Fjord thinks borders on unhealthy and possibly dangerous. But Nott does as she’s asked and as long as she gets to stay on board and not get in contact with the ocean itself, they’re both fine with the arrangement. Though how someone like her got hired by the navy is beyond Fjord’s imagination.  
  
Today she is wearing a dress, and based on the look on her face, she might as well have been thrown overboard. Still, Fjord has a sneaking suspicion that the young woman likes it.  
  
“Don’t you know it’s rude to keep ladies waiting? Especially Jessie. She deserves better!”  
  
Introducing Jester to Nott may have been the best and worst decision of Fjord’s life. They are too alike in many ways, and sometimes it’s difficult to convince Nott to return to The Mistake because she would rather solve “mysteries” with Jester.  
  
But Fjord knows all too well what being alone feels like, and he could never rob Jester of a friend. Even when said friend is Nott.  
  
“I’m ready,” Fjord says, as the truth of the words settle over him like a blanket on a cold day, or Jester’s arms around him when the loss of Vandren becomes too much. It brings tears to his eyes, and he thanks whatever deities that might listen that he met Jester that day.  
  
\----  
  
He faces the ocean and doctor Clay, nervous energy thrumming through him.  
  
All around him the sunflowers bloom and people are seated, watching, waiting. Beau is at his side, first mate and best woman. Fjord has waited for this moment for so long, and as the seconds pass by all too slowly, he cannot begin to worry if Jester will show up or not. The fear of being abandoned still lingers, despite the fact that Fjord can not imagint Jester would do such a thing.  
  
Then the music starts to play.  
  
It weaves through the air, like wind given sound, so perfectly matched with the waves lapping lazily as the shore just a few feet away. He wants to turn, but does not know if he can do so or not. Everything doctor Clay told him of the procedure has left him, and the need to see her fills every fibre of his being.  
  
But he stays still, turned away until she’s at his side.  
  
No, that is not right. Jester is not the one who will stand by him; it is _he_ who will stand by _her_ , in all her decisions and for all her pranks. What Jester wants, Fjord will be sure to give her, or at least try his best to. Not because he sees himself as the one who will provide for her, but because Jester deserves it.  
  
And then she is there.  
  
Marion lifts up Jester’s veil, kissing her daughter on the cheeks before turning to Fjord and doing the same to him. There is joy on her face but sadness in her eyes also, and Fjord knows it is because she never got to experience this with Jester’s father. Marion does not hand over her daughter to him, as a father would have done with a daughter. What she does is take a hold of both their hands and join them together.  
  
For equality, for unity.  
  
It signals Fjord joining their family, fully this time. It shows that Jester is not property for Fjord to do with as he wants. Fjord would not have accepted another way of doing this, and his heart swells even more because of it.  
  
Marion takes her seat, and Fjord turns to look at Jester.  
  
She is yellow, like the sunflowers that surrounds them, like she was on the day they met. Flowers cover the top of the dress, and cascade down the front, spreading out over the skirt. He sees embroidered flowers and real ones, plucked fresh from the gardens surrounding the mansion. Jester’s hair is braided and there are flowers in her hair, just like the ones on her dress.  
  
“You’re so beautiful,” Fjord tells her and he hears the awe in his own voice.  
  
Jester smiles at him, but before she can say anything, Caduceus speaks up.  
  
The people gathered to celebrate this day with them take their seats again, as they had stood up as Marion had led Jester down the aisle.  
Fjord hears the words but they do not register in his mind. They are both facing Caduceus as he goes through the ceremony, but all of Fjord’s focus is on on Jester next to him.  
  
As he sneaks glances at her out of the corner of his eyes, he sees her do the same.  
  
“Do you, Fjord, take Jester as your wife?” Caduceus asks, and Fjord’s focus is shifted. The small crowd laughs as he fumbles, but it is not mocking, like when he was a child. It comes from knowing him, comes from friends and family. He waits for Beau to elbow him as she tends to do, but she just grins at him.  
  
“I do,” Fjord says, and thinks truer words have never passed over his lips.  
  
“And do you, Jester, take Fjord as your husband?”  
“Of course I do!” Jester says, laughing and smiling up at him. The laughter from Fjord’s fumbling carries over and it sounds just the same. It warms him, fills him to the brim with happiness.  
  
“You may say your vows,” the doctor continues.  
  
Fjord’s mind blanks. He worked so hard on what to say, to sound dignified and to express his feelings properly. But now that the time is here, he can not remember a single word. The paper lays forgotten on the dresser in what was his room, up until tonight.  
  
“Jester. I worked so hard on what to say to you, to let you know what I feel. But I realised just now that it’s not right. I have to speak from my heart. I love you. I think I did the first time I laid eyes on you, dressed in yellow, looking like a sunflower. Just as you are now.   
Do you know what my biggest fear was after I left for the ocean after that? It was that I would never see you again.  
I wrote you letters, intending to tell you of the sights I saw and drew the constellations above me.  
When I opened my eyes and saw you, I thought I had died and that you were an angel. And you were. You saved my life, and I stand here, by your side, today because of you, Jester. You deserve the world and I promise I will do what it takes to repay the kindness and love you have shown me these past months.  
I love you so much. I love your pranks, the way you stick your tongue out when you concentrate on something. I love watching you draw, and how you in one moment paint nature and then in the next make the silliest little drawings, like hamster unicorns. Not a day goes by where I do not think I am the luckiest person alive, because you chose me. When all else was lost, I had you.”  
  
He trails off, tears staining his voice. Jester reaches a hand out and wipes a single tear away.  
  
“I never thought I‘d find anyone like you, Fjord,” she starts, and he hears the tears in her voice as well. “But when we first met, I knew you were the one for me. Mama says that when father wooed her, he brought her sunflowers each day for as long as they bloomed. Ever since she first told me that story, they’ve been my favourite.   
And there you were, the handsomest man I’ve ever seen, comparing me to my favourite flower. You didn’t know so at the time, and it made it all the more special to me.  
And then you left, and I was scared the ocean would claim you like it claimed my father. But the ocean returned you to me, to where we’re now. And it was a sign, you know?  
But I was scared you’d leave when you felt better. And the day you went to get a job but didn’t tell anyone where you went? I worried but then you came back, you came home, and that’s the first time I could imagine us married.”  
She lets out a small laugh. “I didn’t even write this down, you know, but I dreamt about us being married and with a daughter with my hair and your skin and I woke up crying because it felt so real, you know? And I want that, Fjord, I want that with you. The ocean takes and the ocean gives, and it gave me you. I love you so so so much.”  
  
Fjord doesn’t even wait for the next part of the ceremony.  
  
He takes Jester’s face in his hands, cradling it as he wipes away her tears and he kisses her, pouring every ounce of the love he has for her into it. It’s gentle and chaste and unlike any of the kisses they have shared before.  
  
Laughter and applause rings out around them.  
  
They pull apart, and Jester turns to Nott as Fjord turns to Beau to receive the rings. Jester’s ring is gold with a sapphire set in the middle. Fjord’s ring matches hers, but he has a small emerald inlaid instead. The inside of Fjord’s ring reads _sunflower and sapphire_ , the two things he mostly associates with his wife. _His wife_ .  
  
As soon as their rings are on, Jester picks him up and twirls him around, to the amusement of the crowd. She then dips him into a kiss and Fjord thinks he can get used to this.  
  
\-----  
  
The reception is held outside on the large porch.  
  
For a while they talk with their friends, before the musicians takes their places and begin to play a melody composed just for them. Fjord’s never been one for dancing, but he has received training in secret with his friends - Molly and Caleb surprisingly being the ones who knew the dance.  
  
The surprise and joy shows on Jester’s face as he leads her through it.  
  
As the melody dies down, Fjord receives a tap on his shoulder and turns to see Marion standing there, a silent question on her face, and it turns into a surprised smile as Fjord takes it in stride and twirls her into another dance, this one with some more energy than the waltz.  
  
Jester smiles at them before searching out a target of her own.  
  
It turns out to be Caduceus, and to Fjord’s surprise, the tall doctor is gracious and they make it work despite the rather large difference in height. The floor slowly fills up with their friends, and Molly drags Caleb out onto the floor, but most the biggest surprise is that Yasha is the one to ask Beau for a dance.  
  
Another song comes on, and Marion leaves Fjord to watch from the sidelines.  
  
Fjord grins and walks up to Nott. They do not always see eye to eye, but he thinks she could maybe let that go for just tonight. She tries to escape when she sees him approach, his intent apparently clear to her. But she’s mistaken, because he does not want to dance with her; rather, he wants her to dance with Jester. But he would rather not just tell her, because that would be too easy, so he picks her up and Nott almost starts kicking and screaming.  
  
Bringing her onto the makeshift dance floor, he taps Jester on the shoulder and when she turns around, he puts Nott down in front of her.  
  
“I found you a new dance partner,” he says, and grins at his wife. Jester grins back and sweeps Nott into the next dance before their small friend can make another attempt at running away.  
  
Fjord and Caduceus leave the dance floor, narrowly missing Molly’s sweeping coat and they stand at the sideline, just watching their friends have fun, completely relaxing for once. The past weeks have been stressful for all of them, and while no pirates have approached the island in quite some time, they know they cannot allow themselves to be lulled into a false sense of security.  
  
But this day is not for such thoughts. This day is for celebration and happiness.  
  
“I’m happy for you,” Caduceus says, in that ever-so-calm tone of his.  
“Thank you. I would not have been here if not for you though.”  
“Now, that’s not true. Miss Jester’s the one that took care of you, not me.”  
“Might be, but she learnt it from someone, did she not? Far as I know, you are the only doctor around.”  
  
Caduceus tips his head to the side in acknowledgement.  
  
“You should go be with your wife,” he tells Fjord, just as Jester looks their way, hair coming undone and a few flowers flying out of it. “You’ve deserved it.”  
  
Fjord smiles at him, and goes to join his wife for another dance.


End file.
